The KwaZulu Natal authorities have started evacuating people from parts of the Durban as the rain began wreaking havoc again. The authorities have been on high alert as the South African weather service (Saws) issued warning alert level 10, which is the highest alert level.
The city said it already identified high-risk areas and put evacuation measures in place. The heavy rain, which started on Friday after Saws issued a warning, has caused severe damage to infrastructure across the province especially in the eThekwini region. Motorists have been urged to be extra careful on the roads after a number of roads and bridges were washed away.
One of the severely affected areas, uMdloti, was affected by landslides on Saturday, which resulted in a number of roads and buildings being washed away. This resulted some of the residents fleeing the area to find shelter elsewhere.
“We are currently worried about uMdloti, we have seen videos of water gushing into people’s houses, towards people’s houses and the roads that look unstable and we have requested that the SANDF, who are in Durban at the moment, assist us there,” said Deputy City Manager, Musa Gumede.
“We are also worried about flats in Tongaat that may have been flooded, especially where there are elderly people and we have sent our teams there as well,” Gumede added.
The province is still trying to recover from the deadly floods that wreacked havoc in April that claimed the lives of more than 400 people.
Source: ENCA, The Witness, Eyewitness News, image from Twitter